Helensburgh local Maeve Turner is preparing to climb Mount Kilimanjaro – Africa’s highest peak – on July 20 to help raise $25,000 for Inuka, a charity she founded to support education and empowerment in rural Tanzania.
Maeve's trek is part of What’s Your Climb?, Inuka’s biggest fundraising campaign to date. Running from June 16 to July 15, it invites individuals, businesses and teams to take on the challenge of their choice over seven, 15 or 30 days.
Among the participants, Ausflip Design & Construction is aiming to raise $1000 for Inuka, with each team member pledging to swim 10km and run 40km over 30 days.
A group known as the "Helensburgh boys" has already raised more than $1650, with each member committing to run 150km over the month.
As of July 1, the campaign has raised more than $10,000 towards its goal.
“It would be amazing if any other businesses wanted to get involved and sponsor us,” Maeve, 25, says.
“It’s a great opportunity to challenge yourself and support something meaningful in Tanzania.
“Everyone, anywhere in the world deserves the right to free and quality education – the What’s Your Climb? campaign is driving funds for that.”
The gap year that launched Inuka
Maeve launched Inuka, a registered Australian charity, in 2019 after spending her gap year in Africa.
She finished year 12 at Bulli High in 2017 and had planned to travel the world. Instead, she found herself teaching English in the Tanzanian region of Arusha, at schools run by a local non-government organisation called CHETI (Children, Health, Education, Team, Inspiration). She also helped raise funds to complete a school building project.
“I’d always wanted to work in human rights, conservation, animal rights, the not-for-profit sector ... I was always drawn to that,” Maeve says.
“I left school thinking I would work for the UN, and then came back from Africa and realised that wasn’t aligned with me anymore.”
Seeing grassroots initiatives in action showed Maeve just how much of a difference they could make. While she saw the value in larger organisations, it was these local, community-led efforts that stood out to her.
In 2019 she returned to Arusha to see how the school was going and reconnect with the people she had worked alongside.
“As someone who had grown up on the South Coast, I was born in a place where I had access to free and quality education,” Maeve says.
“I had a beautiful upbringing – privileged in comparison to the people I’d met there, who were some of the most hopeful people I’ve ever met.
“So it was encouraging to see that the school was doing so well, and that it didn’t take much. At the time, so little went so far.”
Since then, Inuka has helped build two more schools, supported more than 1300 students, and partnered with CHETI to bolster eight existing schools.
Through donations, it has also introduced a student sponsorship program, which currently assists two students in secondary school and four in primary school.
How a microloan is helping women build businesses
Inuka also runs Project Poppy, a microfinance loan program supporting 35 women in Arusha that encourages local self-reliance.
“Every month they get a small loan and they have to repay it, then it goes to another woman,” Maeve says.
“It’s set up to establish or continue running businesses.
“It’s beautiful because these women may not have known each other, or only knew each other loosely, but every month they come together, share their stories, support one another and help their businesses grow, which then supports their families. It’s really inspiring to see what they’ve been able to do with so little start-up funding.”
Building on the success of Project Poppy, the Inuka team is developing a training centre to offer classes in trades, skills and basic finance.
“We have one classroom at the moment that runs free tailoring classes for anyone in the community who wants to learn a new skill or continue to upskill,” Maeve says.
“It’s really great, the students there make the uniforms for our students at the school.
“It’s a nice cycle of the community continuing to support the community. They’re empowering themselves and each other, which I think is really important.”
First-ever sports field gives students space to thrive
Inuka has continued to grow, recently expanding to include more volunteers, including Helensburgh's Brady Tipping.
On July 24, Brady will hike Mount Meru, Africa’s fifth-highest mountain at 4562 metres, to support Inuka’s work.
“I will be making the trek to help raise funds for a new classroom at Inuka’s vocational training centre, expanding access to hands-on learning for girls and women in Arusha,” Brady says.
“And to support the development of the first ever sporting field for the children at CHETI schools – a space where students can build confidence, leadership and resilience through sport and movement.”
Maeve says the sports field is part of a bigger effort to help students thrive outside the classroom.
“Our projects are focused on empowerment and education, and the kids do so well academically,” Maeve adds. “But we thought it was important to give them another opportunity to shine. They’ve never had something like the sports field before.”
Initiatives such as the training centre, Project Poppy and the new sports field all show Inuka’s commitment to listening to the community and responding to their priorities.
“The ethos behind Inuka was always about working closely with people on the ground in Tanzania, to make sure all of our initiatives are community-informed and community-focused,” Maeve says.
“That approach helps with the sustainability and longevity of our work. It’s not just something I – or someone else over here – thinks might be useful.
“It’s important to me, and for the direction of Inuka, that we continue to be informed by those who we've set out to help, and they really help with out decision-making and processes."
The Illawarra generosity driving change
Maeve and Inuka have received strong support from businesses in the Illawarra and beyond, including Raya Thai, Lyfstyle Constructions, AMPAC, Ausflip Design & Construction, Ciro’s Pizza, Imperium Group Fitness and Symbio Wildlife Park.
Maeve says she’s grateful for the way the community continues to get behind the cause, support that goes back even further than Inuka.
Back in high school, when Maeve was determined to study in the United States and needed help raising funds, locals rallied behind her. Helensburgh restaurant Raya Thai, in particular, has supported her from the start. Bulli High School has also been a big help, holding fundraisers and mufti days for Inuka.
“There have also been some amazing people who’ve supported us at events or through donations, who’ve really backed us,” Maeve says.
How to get involved
Support Inuka by becoming a regular donor from $7 a month, sponsor a participant taking part in the What’s Your Climb? challenge or visit the website to find out more.